Ukraine-Russia latest: Starmer reins in Trump criticism in plea for US ‘backstop’ on anniversary of war

The Kremlin said it would wait and see how ties between Russia and a new German government would evolve after Sunday’s election victory for Freidrich Merz’s conservatives.

Mr Merz, 69, will become Germany’s next chancellor after the CDU/CSU blog came in first place, with the Alternative for Germany reaching a historic second.

When asked if the arrival of Mr Merz could precede a more constructive relationship between Russia and Germany, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “Each time (there’s a new government) we want to hope for a more sober approach to reality, for a more sober approach to what could be issues of mutual interest (between Russia and Germany), mutual benefits.

“But let’s see how it will be in reality.”

Just days before Keir Starmer jets off to meet Donald Trump in the White House he has praised him for changing the conversation around Ukraine “for the better”.

That’s one way to describe calling Ukraine’s President Zelensky a dictator.

But the PM realises his trip to Washington calls for diplomacy.

So No 10 said that the President had “brought about these talks that could bring lasting peace in Ukraine which is what we all want to see”.

“We look forward to discussing with President Trump later in the week how we reach that,” the PM’s official spokesperson said.

The eyes of the world will be watching.

The UK will introduce 67 new sanctions and name 40 new ships in its Russian sanctions regime, the government has said.

Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer earlier said it would be Britain’s largest since the early days of the Ukraine war, including more sanctions against the vessels used to help Russia evade sanctions.

Companies in China and elsewhere who supply military components will also be targeted.

Just one month after Donald Trump’s return to the White House, the US president has thrown whatever hopes Kyiv had for future American support into chaos.

In the last week alone he has launched repeated attacks on Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, falsely branding him a “dictator” and wrongly accusing Ukraine of “starting” the war.

And so Ukraine now finds itself fighting a war on two fronts: the grind against the Russian invaders to the east, and the battle to keep Mr Trump on side to the west.

Here, The Independent looks at the very real costs of three years of war in Europe – financially, militarily and on the lives of the men and women who continue to fight for their freedom.

Alicja Hagopian and Tom Watling report:

US president Donald Trump has changed the global conversation around Ukraine “for the better”, the prime minister’s official spokesperson said.

“He’s brought about these talks that could bring lasting peace in Ukraine which is what we all want to see,” the spokesperson added.

“We support president Trump’s US-led efforts and we look forward to discussing with president Trump later in the week how we reach that.”

When asked about the president’s description of Volodymyr Zelensky as a “dictator”, the spokesperson said: “We support and share president Trump’s desire to reach a durable peace in Ukraine.

“(The Prime Minister) looks forward to speaking to president Trump in more detail on that later in the week.”

Political correspondent Archie Mitchell reports:

Sir Keir Starmer has repeated his calls for Donald Trump to provide a “backstop” to keep the peace in Ukraine when Vladimir Putin’s invasion comes to an end.

Speaking to world leaders on a call to mark the third anniversary of the full-scale war, the prime minister won applause from other delegates for promising to “always stand with Ukraine and our allies against this aggression”.

“If Ukraine fails, Europe will be next, and that is what is at stake here,” Sir Keir warned, repeating the words said to him by an injured soldier in Kyiv.

But, piling pressure on Mr Trump to play a lasting role in any peace deal, Sir Keir said: “The UK is ready and willing to support this with troops on the ground, with other Europeans, and with the right conditions in place, and ultimately, a US backstop will be vital to deter Russia from launching another invasion in just a few years time.”

Mr Trump has previously ruled out playing an ongoing role in the defence of Ukraine, urging European allies to do more to protect the continent themselves.

There was a stark contrast between the messages to Donald Trump brought by Canada’s Justin Trudeau and UK PM Sir Keir Starmer to the Support Ukraine 2025 Summit.

Addressing gathered delegates in person and online, who included Ukrainian PM Volodymyr Zelensky, Mr Trudeau opened his remarks with a stark rebuke to the US president, who has accused the Ukrainian of being a dictator and having started the war.

The Canadian PM said: “Thank you Volodymyr, for your courageous leadership as the duly elected democratic leader of this great nation.

“Let us be frank, you and the Ukrainian people should never have had to endure even a single day of this unjustified brutal war… this is not a conflict Ukraine wanted, provoked or asked for.”

Sir Keir by contrast took a much more diplomatic approach with his speech, refusing to criticise Mr Trump for his recent outbursts against Mr Zelensky, and using it to call for the Americans to provide a “backstop” to guarantee any peace agreement between Ukraine and Russia.

Political correspondent Archie Mitchell reports:

“And that is a matter that no doubt will be considered at the point at which the conflict in Ukraine has been concluded. And we need to get to that point as quickly as we possibly can,” Mr Jarvis told Times Radio.

Sir Keir Starmer has promised a fresh round of sweeping sanctions on Russia on the third anniversary of its invasion of Ukraine.

The UK and its allies must “keep dialling up the economic pressure to get Putin to a point where he is ready not just to talk, but to make concessions” Sir Keir said in a remote address to a meeting of Ukraine’s allies in Kyiv.

Sir Keir said he would encourage G7 counterparts to take on larger risk in relation to the oil price cap, sanctioning Russian oil giants and going after banks that enable sanctions evasion.